A Flower for the Vanguard

Mitsuo Kurogari, president of Visage corporation, sat cross legged on the stage. ‘Well Hina, as you know,’ —he was speaking to a young woman in a suit who sat opposite him, nodding, ‘we have, as a city, made substantial technological leaps over the last decade. And we’ve always done it together.’

He turned to the crowd. Holo-cams flashed and his smiling face was lit by hundreds of momentary flashes of light. The spectacle was like some strange mating ritual, the flashing lenses of the crowd a sparkling display of plumage. ‘Together we have faced many trials and together we have always risen above them.’ He stood and walked over to a curtain at the back of the stage, his arm held out. ‘I think it’s time we take another step together.’

There was a sound like a thousand taiko drums striking a single beat. Whispers began to pass among the crowd like a breeze through a field of tall grass.

‘Up till now, the geist problem has been seen as a troubling anomaly, a small price to pay for the luxuries of light-space life… but a problem nonetheless. I would like to take this opportunity to make public what we all know but has not until now been declared officially.’ He paused. ‘The geists are indeed bugs in the code of augmented-reality itself.’

There was much talk among the crowd. Kurogari waited, his hands clasped before him, until it subsided somewhat.‘We don’t know exactly why they exist, or what circumstances bring them into being, though we have made significant progress in this regard.’ He held up his hands. ‘I apologise to anyone who feels misled by this. It was not an easy decision. At the time, my predecessors felt it important to avoid creating a panic.’

A couple of lone flashes went off in the crowd. Heads were now all pointed at him. He smiled. ‘But now… finally… the geists are no longer a problem.’

The curtain lifted and rows upon rows of armoured guards stood motionless, their arms by their sides, their eyes pinpricks of bright blue.

Gasps and conversation now broke out freely among the crowd.

The female interviewer raised her voice. ‘That’s... quite an announcement, President Kurogari. Can I ask what prompted you to make this public?’

Kurogari bowed, his blonde hair remaining perfectly sculpted. ‘For so long now, we have relied on the bravery of our enforcers to keep us safe from the geist threat. They have served valiantly but the truth is… fatalities were growing. But with these Vanguard, VisAge has developed the technology to keep not only the public but our enforcers safe. Finally, our overworked enforcement divisions can concentrate on what they were always meant to: preventing crime.’

He turned and the row of guards stepped forward as one, their eyes glowing brightly for a moment. ‘With one small discharge of our patented algorithm each Vanguard unit is able to undo any discrepancies in the light substructure, quickly, quietly and above all safely.’

The interviewer wore a puzzled expression.

‘Forgive me.’ The president bowed again. ‘What we see as geists originate in fragmented code in the underlying structures of the city, like wrinkles in an otherwise flat piece of silk.’ He paused and scratched his head. ‘Apparently, I’ve been spending too long in our tech division…’

Laughter broke out in the crowd.

He continued. ‘The Vanguard will become a reassuring presence in the city as everyday as the streetlights or security cams that have helped to keep us safe up till now. Some day, we will wonder how we managed without them.’

At this, a small girl walked across stage from the left. She wore red dungarees. In her hands was a tall blue flower. As she passed the guards each stepped back out of her way. When she reached the middle she turned and held out the flower to the guard in the middle. It’s eyes flashed and it looked down firstly at her then the flower. The guard reached toward her and there were more gasps from the crowd. It took the flower, examined it for a moment, then placed it in a slot in its breastplate, gently patted the girl on the head and stood upright.

The crowd laughed, this time with some volume.

The president held up his hands. ‘Please, please… this is only a small demonstration and—‘

All of a sudden there was come kind of commotion in the crowd. Heads were turning and members of the press jostling against each other, tracing the path of something through their midst. The president squinted to see what was happening. After much scuffling and a few protests a single figure emerged from the front of the gathering.

The man looked up to the row of vanguard at the back of the stage and gestured toward them. In his hand was a half eaten hamburger. ‘So… these new things. They come with a warranty?’ He took a bite out of the burger and stood there chewing on it.

There was the sound of multiple weapons being readied, and two clusters of security rushed out from where they’d been hidden behind a couple of banners at each side of the stage.

The president held up his hand. ‘No, no, it’s fine!’

He looked down and smiled at the man standing beneath him in front of the stage. ‘Inspector… isn’t it?’

‘Prospector.’ Said the man.

‘Prospector… I am always happy to speak with our city’s finest.’ The young president turned back to the crowd.

‘This is one of the brave men and women about whom I was talking and who will no longer need to put their lives on the line for our safety. Please, if you could take a moment, I’d like to applaud the service of all our city’s protectors.’

He bowed toward the man as an uncertain wave of applause issued from the crowd.

The man looked around, chewing on his burger.

***

President Kurogari looked at them sidelong as the young make up girl brushed his face.

‘I hope that didn’t make you feel uncomfortable.’

‘Nah, it’s fine. Guys like me gotta fight off the paperazzi all the time.’

Kurogari smiled broadly and resumed staring into the distance as the girl adjusted his make up. They were just behind the stage area, where the press were kept at bay, packing away their cameras and holo-recorders behind a line of tape. Somehow, looking at the president, Rinako felt she was still staring at the smiling image that had been on the holo-screen.

‘That was a brave move. I imagine your chief will have something to say about it.’

‘When doesn’t he…’

Again the president smiled.

‘It seemed quicker than making an appointment. There’re a couple of things playing on my mind. I’m not good at forgetting that stuff.’ Said Kurama.

‘Certainly. Aoi.’ He called out. A holographic secretary appeared beside him, notepad in hand. ‘Will you show them to my office upstairs? I’m sorry—I’ll only be a moment…’ he gestured with open hands as the make up girl continued to work on him.

‘Sure. Take your time.’ Said Kurama.

The secretary took them to a central lift behind a pair of bronze reception desks in the foyer of the Nagasaki building. The whole way ‘up’, Rinako tapped her foot furiously.

‘Don’t be nervous, these guys are all the same.’ Said Kurama but before he could continue the lift had stopped and Rinako walked straight out ahead of him. An instance of Kurogari’s secretary was waiting for them at the top.

‘I’m sorry, there are no holo-generators in the lift system so I am unable to accompany you between floors.’

A few plush wooden walnut walled corridors led to the president’s office. Every few seconds they’d see one of the vanguard either standing with its back to the wall, or through the window of one of the many offices.

He wasn’t kidding when he said they’d be as common as streetlights…

After a while, she stopped noticing the steady rise and fall of their humming whenever one was nearby.

They were shown into the office and sat at a pair of black leather seats in front of a large green topped desk that backed onto an enormous floor to ceiling window. From it the peaks of the other halls around the esplanade were visible. Anyone working here would feel like they ran the city. On the desk’s surface was a holographic maquette of the city, divided into wards. It rotated slowly.

Kurogari emerged from a side door after a few moments. He pulled off his tie, tossed it onto the chair and went straight to a decanter on a sideboard by the far wall and poured himself a drink.

A pair of glasses sat in front of Rinako and Kurama on the desk. After he’d poured one for Kurama, Rinako held up her hand.

‘No?’ He looked up at her, then replaced the bottle. ‘Well, it’s up to you but you’re missing out.’ He held up the glass so the light from the window lit its contents like liquid garnet. ‘My father used to import this from Venezuela.’ He sniffed at the glass. ‘You know they used to bring back the real stuff themselves, in trucks if they had to while the sanctions were in place. I miss that sometimes. You can taste the miles.’

‘Yeah, well… ’ said Kurama, sipping his.

Kurogari smiled and sat opposite them. ‘Yes. I’m sorry. It’s been a long day.’

‘That was a pretty big announcement.’

‘Well,’ he sighed, ‘it’s been coming a long time.’ He loosened his collar, leaning back. ‘It seemed like people have a right to know. I’m not blaming the previous government, they had their own issues to deal with but it never sat right with me, keeping things quiet like that.’

‘I bet internal security love you.’

Kurogari laughed openly and smiled at Kurama. ‘There have been a few heated discussions between the general and myself, it’s true. But everyone’s on the same side really. It can be hard to remember that sometimes.’

Kurama nodded. ‘They really able to take out a geist like you said?’

A more serious expression fell over Kurogari’s face. ‘Tech has been working on it for years. Ever since the Alter project really—‘

Rinako looked up.

‘Yeah, we’ve seen how efficient they are in the office.’ Said Kurama.

Kurogari leant forward suddenly in his chair. ‘But these aren’t like Alters.’ His eyes were blazing. ‘They were developed using the same augmentation but the vanguard… there’s no need for a human base. No more going around hospitals picking up injured soldiers or officers.’

Kurama frowned. ‘They’re entirely synthetic?’

Kurogari smiled and swirled the whiskey in his glass. ‘Not entirely. But that’s a discussion that would take several days and several scientists far more qualified than me. And they still wouldn’t agree. But the short story is: no living thing will have to go up against the geists again.’

As he stared at his glass Rinako felt he was looking at something neither she nor Kurama could see.

‘Now what was it you wanted to talk about? You said there were a couple of things on your mind.’

Kurama looked down at his glass. ‘Intraderma.’

Rinako looked at him.

‘Ah yes. They’re one of our biggest developers.’ Kurogari leant back again in his chair.

‘Yeah… there have been a few cases involving malfunctioning prostheses.’

A few… how long has he…?

Kurogari listened quietly, his eyes fixed on Kurama’s.

‘And the thing is… Intraderma keeps coming up. Now, it might just be coincidence. It’s perfectly possible. Likely even. But like I say, I’m not so good at forgetting these things.’

A troubled expression appeared on Kurogari’s face. ‘And these are official implants or upgrades? You’re certain.’

‘That much, I’m certain, yeah.’

Kurogari’s chair span as he sat back and pressed his fingers together.

‘There have been incidences of schematics being leaked from the factories, and the moulds reused in—‘

‘No, these are sourced straight from Intraderma. Codes check out.’

‘And when you say malfunctions—‘

‘Data corruption.’ Said Kurama. ‘Sens-sim upgrades.’

Kurogari waved a finger idly. ‘This is concerning.’

He clicked a button on the table, leant forward and spoke into the air. ‘Aoi, schedule a meeting with Ide at Intraderma, tomorrow morning.’

The automated voice came back. ‘Sir, you have a—‘

‘Cancel it.’

‘Yes sir.’ 

He clicked off the button and leant back in his chair, swivelling in it for a few moments, before suddenly standing and bowing at both of them.

‘Thank you for bringing this to my attention. You can be sure, I’ll look into it.’

Kurama stood and bowed slightly. ‘We appreciate it, President Kurogari. And I’m sorry if—‘

‘What about the rumours that VisAge ran covert testing of its internal cosmetics lines under the pretext of medical care in the general populace?’

Kurama looked down at Rinako, his eyes opened wide. She remained seated, her face fixed on Kurogari’s. ‘The people of Toyama Prefecture for instance, where cases of degenerative illness among those who underwent complementary procedures in VisAge facilities were swept under the carpet?’

‘Uhh Rinako…’ said Kurama.

‘No, it’s ok.’ Kurogari held up a hand. ‘It’s fine Officer Kurama.’

He looked at Rinako and smiled. ‘I see you are well versed in some of the holo’s less reputable portrayals of us.’

Kurama saw that Rinako’s foot was tapping the floor again.

Kurogari looked at her. His voice softened. ‘It is true that in the early stages some of the internal cosmetics procedures induced some unforeseen side effects—but this was very early in the development cycle, among a tiny minority of voluntary test candidates. With current technology it’s simply not possible for those issues to arise anymore. I do understand your concern. As for Toyama Prefecture, that was a story run when the elections were going. VisAge did have a facility in the area but it was only for physiotherapy among the elderly—rumours about experimental power plants or chemicals being tested in the population’s water supply were running every other week at that time.’

He sat for a moment, his hands pressed together, looking at Rinako before turning to Kurama. ‘Anyway. I do hope I’ve satisfied your curiosity. And please, if you have any further questions,’ he raised his arm and gestured toward the door.

***

Rinako stormed out of the entrance, marched straight between the columns and almost knocked over two photographers who had been crouched packing their equipment away.

Kurama appeared seconds later. ‘Sorry, sorry—‘ he called out to the photographers before turning back to chase after her. ‘Hey, what was that?!’

Rinako carried on walking.

Kurama caught her arm but she batted away his hand so he had to run in front of her, walking backwards while looking over his shoulder now and then to avoid bollards and passersby.

‘What was what?’ She avoided making eye contact.

‘Err… all that stuff about—what was it—covert testing… you biting the president’s head off with absolutely no provocation—we’ll be lucky if they don’t bounce us down to holograffiti!’

‘Good. They can bounce us out the force for all I care!’

She stopped abruptly and Kurama stumbled for a moment. He noticed now the redness around her eyes.

‘You think he deserves that kind of reception,’ she was gesturing back to where the reporters had been. ‘Guys like that… that… place…’ her eyes were roving around as if they couldn’t settle.

‘Hey!’ he held up his hands. ‘I’m no fan of VisAge—‘

‘—piece of drak, drak-eating—if there was any— ‘ she wiped her nose on her sleeve.

Kurama put his hands against her shoulders cautiously. ‘Hey, hey, what’s got into you?’ He tried to look into her eyes but she evaded him. ‘Everyone knows VisAge are a pile of garbage.’

She looked to the side, her hair hanging limp over her face. ‘Yeah, sure. Everyone knows.’ She sniffed.

Kurama frowned.

‘It’s nothing, alright. Just… forget it.’

She walked past him and before he could call out, said ‘I’m fine.’

Kurama’s shoulders slumped as he looked after her. ‘Kind of need the keys to the car…’

From behind him came the voice of one of the photographers. ‘Hey, she gonna apolog—‘

‘How’d you like to be up on charges of impeding an investigation?’

The photographer held up his hands and walked back toward his colleague shaking his head.

Kurama turned back and watched as Rinako’s figure shrank into the street.